Timber industry giant Weyerhaeuser is about to get even bigger. The Federal Way, Washington-based company announced Monday that it's buying Longview Timber in a sale valued at more than $2.6 billion.
Weyerhauser says the purchase will increase its timber holdings in the Pacific Northwest by more than 33 percent. According to Weyerhaeuser and timber industry analysts, it's the third largest timber deal in U.S. history.
Hakan Ekstrom is president of the timber industry consulting firm Wood Resources International near Seattle. He says that while Weyerhaeuser has expanded its portfolio in recent years, this deal marks a return to the company's roots. "Now they're kind of coming back to their core business and expanding what they're really good at, and that's growing trees."
And then cutting them down. Ekstrom says he doesn't expect any dramatic changes in the number of timber industry jobs in the region as a result of the deal. Most of the land involved in the sale is in western Washington and western Oregon.
On the Web:
Weyerhaeuser news release - Weyerhaeuser